Criminal Business
by Zorua101
Summary: Over the past few months, several people in Edolas have vanished into thin air. But why did they vanish? Who abducted them? Was it even caused by a person...? (Set three years after the Edolas arc.)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: My newest FT fanfiction, and this one has an actual plot. I'll try my best to actually finish this one without getting bored and abandoning it. XD It doesn't have any OCs in it unless you count the Edolas counterparts that didn't appear in the canon anime or manga. So, I hope you enjoy the fanfiction, and like all my stories, flames will be ignored.**

* * *

><p>"Wow! This place is really awesome, don't you guys agree?"<p>

"Whatever."

The dark-haired reporter draped an arm around his friend's shoulders. "Aw, c'mon, Sting! Why do you always act like such a stick in the mud? Can't you at least pretend to enjoy yourself?"

Orga frowned at his old-fashioned watch. "Do focus, Rogue. We _are _on a tight schedule here."

"But this temple is very nice," Minerva said. "Look at this beautiful architecture!"

Yukino roughly prodded Minerva with the microphone she was holding. "Get off the goddamn scene!"

Minerva frowned. "You're not very nice, Yukino," she commented before she walked away.

""Not very nice" is an understatement," Rufus snorted.

"Watch your mouth, blondie!" Yukino yelled.

"Then how about you quit acting like such a bitch?" Rufus yelled back.

"Stop bickering, you fools! We are on a tight schedule!" Orga shouted over both of them.

"That has to be the thousandth time you've said that today, Orga," Rogue sighed. "Cut us some slack, man! Lighten up for once! Stop and smell the roses!"

"I will not stop and smell the roses, as there are no roses to smell," Orga stated. "Now everyone get into your positions!"

Yukino, Rufus and Sting all rushed to their positions. Rogue stood in the middle of the tiled floor. "…I need to pee," he decided, before running off to behind a nearby wall to do his business, ignoring the groans of the others.

* * *

><p>It had been a full fifteen minutes since Rogue had gone off to the bathroom.<p>

"Sting, do go and fetch Rogue," Orga sighed.

The blonde nodded and headed off in the direction Rogue had gone in. He headed down the hallway for almost a full minute before he reached a dead end. And there was still no sign of Rogue.

"Rogue!" he yelled. "Rogue, this is not funny!"

There was no response. Against all logic, Sting started to look around for secret tunnels or trapdoors. "Come on, Rogue! I know you're here!"

* * *

><p>Several more minutes later, Sting returned to the others, pale-faced and shocked.<p>

"Where is he?" Rufus asked.

"…He's gone."

* * *

><p>It was a solemn occasion; that much was easy to tell. Everyone in the room wore the same serious expression, and not one of them was speaking a word. Even the usually cheerful Sergeant Macbeth wasn't joking around. Not to mention that constable Sawyer was actually awake and standing up for once. And this was probably the first time constable Sorano had been in the same room as Dan Gay without fangirling over him. And Coco was sitting still. And Hughes hadn't used the words "awesome" or "totally" for a full eight minutes. You get the point.<p>

Captain Brain cleared his throat. "So. We're all here to discuss a series of very troubling disappearances over the past few months. All the victims so far vanished without a trace at various times of day, and haven't been seen or heard of since. Sergeant Macbeth, if you would list all the known victims?"

Macbeth nodded and cleared his throat. "The first one to disappear was Mavis, a young girl from a rich family. Then there was Kama, the lead singer of the band Garou Knights. Byro, the chief of staff of the Edolas Royal Army. Natsu, a well-known representative of the Fairy Tail guild. Ultear, one of the lead representatives of Grimoire Heart, one of the biggest businesses in the world. Rogue, a reporter who's almost as famous as Gajeel. So, what do all these people have in common?"

"They're known by a great number of people," stated Neppa of the Garou Knights. "What baffles me is the fact that they would abduct those whose absence would be quickly noted. What is the purpose of this, exactly?"

"Maybe they're attention whores," Cosmos of the Garou Knights grumbled.

"But why would anyone go to such lengths just for attention?" Orga asked.

"They might want people to come after them," Meredy of Grimoire Heart suggested. "Lure them into a trap or something."

"Then don't you think they would have left some kind of hint at where they are?" Yukino snapped.

"She has a good point," Rufus said. "For once."

Orga and Sting both rolled their eyes as an argument broke out between Yukino and Rufus.

"But hang on…" Azuma's eyes widened. "If they're taking people who are well-known, then almost anyone in this room could be next!"

"Shut up, you're making people worry," Zoldeo said.

"They're already worrying…"

"Yeah, and you're not helping!"

"Um…" Lance-corporal Erik was trying to be heard above the swearing and insults. "U-um… excuse me?"

"Shut up and listen to what the idiot has to say, dumbasses!" corporal Richard yelled.

All eyes turned to Erik, who flushed bright red. "I-I just think that m-maybe they need the people for something… l-like, making them work or something?"

"But why those specific people? It makes no sense," Sawyer frowned. "I mean, Mavis is a little girl, Byro is an old man, Rogue and Ultear are so stubborn they won't work no matter what they try to do to them…"

"So I guess we can rule that out," Erza said.

"Please can you give us the times and dates of the disappearances, Macbeth?" Minerva asked.

"Mavis, July 7, 7:02 A.M. Kama, July 15th, 9:26 A.M. Byro, July 29th, 1:14 P.M. Natsu, August 4th, 5:42 A.M…" Macbeth trailed off.

"There's no pattern," Kamika sighed.

"Then how about we investigate the sites of the disappearances?" Sorano suggested.

Sawyer groaned. "Please don't make me do _work…_"

Brain nodded. "Good idea, Sorano. Alright, everyone will be on teams! Garou Knights, Grimoire Heart, Rogue's TV crew, I'm, err, pretty sure you can't fight…"

"So we should leave?" Zancrow asked hopefully.

"Yes, I suppose we should," Kain sighed.

"Let's go, then," Rustyrose grumbled. "Damn, I was looking forward to that investigation, too…"

After the door had shut behind them, Richard glanced at Fairy Tail. "Get lost, losers."

"But why?" Gray asked. "We can fight!"

"Yeah, but you break everything you touch. Get out."

"Let's just leave," Cana suggested. "I'd much rather be at home drinking tea than here arguing with _him._"

"Right." Brain started talking the second Fairy Tail had left. "We've already investigated Mavis's home – we found nothing there – and we have no clue where Natsu was when he disappeared. That leaves the respective disappearance sites of Kama, Byro, Ultear and Rogue. So we'll be in four teams. Is that okay with everyone?"

Everyone else either grumbled in indifference or nodded in assent.

"So. Rogue was preparing to do a report on an old temple outside the city where strange things have been happening lately when he disappeared. Knightwalker, Erik, I'm sending you there."

Erik went pale. "A-are you sure? Can't we r-r-reconsider this?"

"You're not afraid of me, are you, lance-corporal Erik?" Erza asked.

"N-no ma'am!" Erik lied.

"Then I see no problem with this." She turned to Brain. "Continue."

"Ultear was alone on the top floor of the Grimoire Heart office building when she vanished. Sorano, Coco, that's where you'll be going."

"So you're not teaming me up with Danny?" Sorano asked, disappointed.

"Teaming you up with me wouldn't get us anywhere," murmured Dan, who had taken over as commander of Squad Four in the royal army while Sugarboy became commander of Three, Hughes became commander of Two and Knightwalker became commander of One.

"As for Byro," Brain continued, "he was in one of those labs he has under the city. It was several miles from the castle, I believe. Macbeth and Hughes, you'll be going there."

Hughes glared at Brain. "You're putting me with _him?_"

"Hey! Don't hurt my feelings!" Macbeth snapped.

"Then there's Kama. He was in his own house when he vanished. Sawyer and Sugarboy, you'll be investigating there."

Sawyer groaned again. "Why me…?"

"Richard, Dan and I will stay here in case something bad happens."

"Can't I stay here while Richard goes to the stupid singer's house?" Sawyer asked.

"No," Brain answered. "You'd just sit around and sleep. You need to get out more."

"But if you leave Danny here with Richard, he might get hurt!" Sorano cried.

"I can fight for myself, you know!" Dan snapped. "And stop calling me Danny!"

"Just go, idiots," Richard told them.

The four teams trudged out of the door. The same thought was running through all eight heads: _This can't possibly end well…_


	2. Chapter 2

"…Yes, this is definitely the place," Erza stated, looking up at the building before them. It was two stories tall with a dome-shaped roof, constructed from pale brown bricks, and had intricate designs all over the walls.

It was also in the middle of the desert.

Erik was now sweating for two reasons. But he had a hope of getting away from the scary red-haired lady. "Y-you could go in while I stand guard outside…"

"Not a chance, lance-corporal," Erza answered, grabbing the back of his shirt. "You're coming in with me."

"Help," Erik whimpered almost inaudibly as he was dragged toward the entrance of the temple.

* * *

><p>"Wow! I had no idea there were all these tunnels beneath the Royal City! Isn't this cool? Are these really Byro's labs? So cool!"<p>

Hughes walked through the dimly-lit tunnels beneath the city with his hands in his pockets. Macbeth was half-walking, half-skipping beside him, and was, unfortunately, his old chirpy self again. The former had had to listen to the latter's excited blabbering for nearly two hours.

"So, does anyone other than Byro ever come down here?" Macbeth asked.

"Nah… wait, yeah, actually," Hughes answered. "There's, like, a cleaner or something. He's a creep, though. I totally hope we don't run into him."

"Well, that's not a very nice thing to say," Macbeth said. "How is he creepy?"

"He just… is."

"Well, I'm very curious about this cleaner of yours. I hope we run into him."

"Trust me, man, you really don't wanna meet him."

* * *

><p>"Can I rest now?" Sawyer asked. "We've been walking for almost two hours…"<p>

Sugarboy stared at him. "How on earth did you make it into the police force with that kind of attitude?"

Sawyer shrugged. "Meh, captain Brain basically takes in anyone who looks like they need a job."

"…Whatever the case, we're here now."

Sawyer stared, appalled, at the house before them. The white paint was beginning to chip away, it was only two stories tall, and the front yard was tiny. "A famous singer lives _here?_"

"_Lived_ here, technically," Sugarboy pointed out. "Come on, let's go inside."

"But… he could probably afford a mansion!" Sawyer squeaked. "With a pool and a hot tub and a huge… couch…" He slumped forward. "…Oh man, I want that couch…"

"Come on, we don't have all day. Go into the house or I will drag you in there."

"Jeez, I thought Knightwalker was the violent one…" Sawyer grumbled, trudging toward the surprisingly average house.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe I'm stuck with a little girl!" Sorano cried. "What about Danny? What if that violent bastard Richard is hurting him?!"<p>

"Um, Sorano?" Coco said. "Not to be rude or anything, but maybe you should stop worrying about your crush and focus on the mission…?"

"You don't understand how I feel!" the woman sobbed. "You're not at the age where you get interested in boys yet!"

Coco couldn't help but take a little bit of offense on that. "I'm twelve!"

"Exactly! You're still little!"

The younger girl, deciding it was best not to get into an argument, looked up at the elevator buttons. "So, captain Brain said the top floor, right?"

"Yes, he did," Sorano answered, pushing the button to open the elevator doors. It was after the closing hours of Grimoire Heart, but Precht had let them have the keys because they were doing an investigation for the OSPF (the Oracion Seis Police Force).

The elevator doors closed behind them a few seconds after they stepped into the tiny space. The journey upwards was only a minute or so, and the two girls stood in silence the whole way.

Finally, the doors slid open and they stepped out onto the beige-carpeted top floor of Grimoire Heart's office building. The walls were mostly well-polished windows, and from up here they could see the smaller buildings below, which looked absolutely tiny from up here.

"Right," Sorano stated. "Let's split up. It'll make the search quicker."

Coco nodded, and the two of them headed off in opposite directions to search the area.

* * *

><p>All was silent in the Oracion Seis police force office. Richard was reading the newspaper. Dan was just sitting there. Brain had gone to get a coffee.<p>

The silence was broken as Dan stood up and started to walk out of the room. There was a loud rustling of paper as Richard dropped the newspaper. "Where're you going?"

Dan rolled his eyes. "I'm going to the washroom, dimwit. Do you seriously _need _to know where I'm going?"

Richard stood up. "Did you just call me a _dimwit?"_

"Yes, I did… _dimwit."_

"You don't have a lot of room to talk, pal."

"Oh?"

"You joined the army. Only idiots do that."

"_Excuse _me? So all of us commanders are idiots, are we? Lily was an idiot, was he?"

"Uh-huh! And you're the worst of 'em all!"

"…Oh, I get it now. You're jealous because women actually like me."

"What the fuck does this have to do with women?!"

"Oh dear, are you two fighting?" asked Brain from the doorway.

Dan turned to him. "Yes, because your dumb corporal here won't let me out of the room!"

"I didn't say anything about not letting you out of the room! _You _were the one who insulted _me _first!" Richard snarled.

Brain sighed. "Dan, you had no right to insult Richard. Richard, you shouldn't have retaliated. Dan, you can go wherever you need to go now."

"_Thank _you," Dan hissed, glancing over his shoulder at Richard. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go get my coffee."

There was silence for a few seconds after he left.

"…Wait," Richard muttered. "Didn't he say he was going to use the washroom before…?"

* * *

><p>"What's with these inscriptions…?" Erza murmured, kneeling on the ground to look at some of the designs on the wall.<p>

"Uh… I-I don't think they have anything to do with the d-disappearances…" Erik answered.

Erza glared at him. "I know that. I was just curious about what they might have meant to the ancient people." She stood up. "But you're right, now isn't the time to be focusing on things like this. Let's go."

Erik's eyes widened. "W-wait, we're going deeper into the temple? Where it's d-dark and maybe full of venomous snakes? And spiders? And monsters?"

The redhead rolled her eyes. "There's no such thing as monsters, the snakes that live in this particular desert aren't venomous, and spiders… yes, there probably will be enormous spiders in there, actually."

Erik nearly fainted. "C-can't I wait here?!"

"No. Look, the spiders are harmless, okay? Think of them as… hairballs. They look awful, but they can't hurt you."

The policeman nodded, took a deep breath, and walked into the narrow tunnel which led to the rest of the temple.

* * *

><p>"Hughes, I think I found something!"<p>

"Say what?!"

The commander turned around to see Macbeth kneeling on the ground next to an empty candy bar wrapper. "Does this count as evidence?"

Hughes thought for a moment. "Well, Byro doesn't like candy bars, so he totally didn't leave it here… but the cleaner does like them, so it was probably him."

"But if he's a _cleaner, _he wouldn't leave garbage lying around," Macbeth argued.

"…Hey, that's actually a good point."

"Why do you sound so surprised?"

"I, like, thought you were a total ditz at first. Guess you're not."

"Hmph. That offends me."

"That's not very hard to do, is it?"

* * *

><p>"Sawyer, come on. Get off of the couch."<p>

"But I'm _tired."_

"Maybe that's because you sleep all the time. Now get up."

"Who gave you the right to boss me around? You can't give me orders just 'cause you're in the army and I'm a policeman."

"Actually, yes I can."

"See? You commanders all think you're so superior to us."

"I am _not _investigating this house alone, Sawyer. _Please _get up."

"Meh, well, since you said please… no."

Sugarboy sighed. "Why did Brain have to assign me to a job with the difficult one?"

Sawyer yawned. "Look, I've already searched this room, and I found nothing. Just let me have half an hour of rest, okay?"

"…Fine, half an hour. But then you must stand up and search the other rooms."

"Okay, okay…" Sawyer fell asleep almost the second he was allowed to lie down, dreading the moment when he would have to wake up and do actual work.

* * *

><p>"How long does it take to make one cup of coffee? It's been twenty freaking minutes."<p>

"Patience, Richard," Brain said.

"I'm really suspicious about that Dan guy," Richard stated, narrowing his eyes.

"Don't be. If they accepted him into the Royal Army, he can't be all that bad."

"To be honest, I don't trust _any _of those commanders, but he's the one who I really think is up to something."

"I'll tell you what. Why don't you go into the kitchen and check on him?" Brain suggested. "It might help to ease your suspicion a little."

Richard stood up and walked into the kitchen without a word, preparing for an argument with Dan. But he didn't end up arguing with him.

The coffee machine was off. By the looks of it, it had never been on. The door of the washroom was wide open, so there was no chance that he had decided to go in there after all. In fact, he was nowhere in sight.

Dan was gone.


End file.
